Soundtrack of my Life – The One You Love

Soundtrack of my LifeThis is one of a regular series of articles highlighting some of the music that has played a part in my life.

You’ll find a range of songs from old to new. You’ll probably find music that has been part of the soundtrack of your life too.

You can also check out some of the other songs that make up the soundtrack of my life.

Last week I highlighted three songs from David Bowie to mark his passing. Today I’m marking the loss of another great musician.

The One You Love – Glenn Frey

Glenn Frey’s music covered a wide range of genres that it’s hard to choose a song that truly represents his career but as this is the ‘soundtrack of my life’ I had to choose a song from his first solo album, No Fun Aloud. The album was released in 1982, back when I was 19 and some people that are reading this post weren’t even born. I bought the vinyl copy because back then it was either vinyl or cassette.

The album quickly became a favourite with schmaltzy (and I mean that in a very good way) tracks like today’s choice, The One You Love, through to a little rock and a wonderful version of Sea Cruise. The album rose to 32 on the U.S. charts and featured two top 40 singles, “The One You Love” and “I Found Somebody”. No Fun Aloud reached gold status, selling half a million copies in the U.S. alone.

The One You Love has a huge helping of eighties saxophone and tells the all too familiar tale of seeing someone you love choosing someone else, or at least it was all too familiar for the 19 year old me when it was released. 🙂

Are you gonna stay with the one who loves you
Or are you goin’ back to the one you love?
Someone’s gonna cry when they know they’ve lost you
Someone’s gonna thank the stars above

The song reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100, #12 in Canada, #36 in New Zealand and #50 in Australia. It also peaked at #2 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary chart.

While Glenn Frey will be remembered more for being a co-founder of The Eagles than his solo work, I’ll always love his own music, right from that first album through to songs with a strong social conscience like I Got Mine with lyrics like the following.

There’s another kind of poverty
That only rich men know
A moral malnutrition
That starves their very souls
And they can’t be saved with money
They’re all running out of time
And all the while they’re thinking
It’s OK ‘Cause I’ve got mine

Check out the rest of the song some time. It’s powerful.

Glenn’s most recent solo work, his fifth and final studio album, was After Hours, a lush lounge album that highlighted his smooth vocals and displayed his incredible versatility.

So now, it’s time to soak in one of the songs that makes up the soundtrack of my life. Enjoy Glenn Frey’s The One You Love.

I’d encourage you to get involved too. Let me know about some of the songs that are etched in your mind. What are the tunes that bring back a flood of memories every time their opening notes start cranking out on your stereo? Are there songs you love for their music and others that speak deeply through their lyrics?

This week I’d be particularly interested in your favourite Glenn Frey music, whether it was anything from his solo work or a favourite Eagles track. I look forward to reading your memories.



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About the author

Rodney Olsen

Rodney is a husband, father, cyclist, blogger and podcaster from Perth Western Australia.

He previously worked in radio for about 25 years but these days he spends his time at Compassion Australia, working towards releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name.

The views he expresses here are his own.

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2 Comments

  • I didn’t know much about his solo work. Only that with the Eagles. After listening to this video I now realize I have heard this but paid no attention to the artist. Thanks for sharing it. My favorite Eagles song? “Lying Eyes” with the phrase “every form of refuge has its price.” I also liked “Life in the Fast Lane.”

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